This thread is for asking questions of general interest concerning the Encyclopedia. The questions and answers will be edited so that this thread keeps a FAQ-like format.
Do read the whole FAQ before asking a question.
Do not ask questions about specific anime/manga/people.

Over the years we developed several ad-hoc rules for the romanization of Japanese and then we discovered those rules were almost all in the Wikipedia Japanese Manual of Style so we decided to adopt those Wikipedia rules directly. Read them and learn them.

Addendum: It may be worth noting that not all occurences of "ou" are long vowels. For example, the name 横内 is Yoko(横)+uchi(内) and so should be spelled Yokouchi (Yokōchi is incorrect)

Last edited by Dan42 on Thu Dec 29, 2011 9:21 pm; edited 2 times in total

First of all you need to have enough experience and familiarity with the Encyclopedia, so we look for people who have at least 1000 points on the contributors's list. But beyond that, the job of an editor is to interact with all the other contributors who report errors, submit new titles, and ask questions. Handling those queries requires both communication and research skills. Communication skills mean that we want people who are active in the forums, can stay cool and polite when responding, and who will notice and answer questions in the Encyclopedia forum (or at least help a little if they don't have full answers). And research skills mean the ability to dig down and find the authoritative sources without falling for misinformation, the judgment to separate the wheat from the chaff. In that regard, Japanese language skills are a definite plus since the most authoritative sources are often in Japanese.

Last edited by Dan42 on Thu Dec 29, 2011 9:21 pm; edited 1 time in total

Is the "English title" in the episode title section supposed to be a translation of the Japanese title, or (assuming their translation is less than faithful, but not wildly different enough to warrant an EDITED: tag) whatever the R1 company calls it?

It should be the official english title of the episode. If there isn't an official version yet then it should be the most common translation of the Japanese title. Often the official title will not change much from the most common fan translation, but if it does then the fan translation should and will be superceded by the official translation.

Last edited by Dan42 on Tue Jan 12, 2010 5:17 am; edited 2 times in total

There is only supposed to be one series summary per series. So, for anime where character or place names (or ideas even) differ from the Japanese version to the English version, which spellings should be used?

A tricky and relatively unusual situation. If only the names were modified, then the plot summary could be written with the original Japanese-version names in parenthesis after the English-version name, for example: "When John Smith (Junichi Sawada) finds an ancient artifact in his backyard..."

But if the plot summary in the English version is so different from the Japanese version as to require a complete rewrite, then we could probably consider that to be a heavily edited version. At that point it would be better to bring up this topic in the forum and discuss what to do with the series. Splitting the anime into edited and non-edited versions may be a more appropriate response than entering two conflicting plot summaries.

Last edited by Dan42 on Tue Jan 12, 2010 5:17 am; edited 2 times in total

How you calculate an anime's Weighted score? (as opposed to arithmetic score)

The short answer is: you can't, it's a secret.

The long answer is that, in order to prevent the ratings from becoming a spam-fest, we use various heuristics to detect "spammy" ratings and neutralize their impact on the rankings. So users that try to manipulate the rankings wind up with low trustability, and the weighted score simply reflects that ratings which come from more "trustworthy" users carry more weight. This is also the reason why the ratings bar graph for each anime often appearsskewed. Obviously, we don't want to reveal too many details about these heuristics, as that would make it a little too easy for spammers to find ways around them. But suffice it to say that if you give your honest opinion without intentionally trying to push a title up or down in the rankings, your trustability has nothing to worry about.

Last edited by Dan42 on Mon Oct 15, 2012 6:56 pm; edited 3 times in total

How can I see the top ten anime for just the last 7 days, or perhaps the last 30 days?

As opposed to the all-time rankings, if you want to see the rankings for only a certain time period or a certain genre, you need to do a genre search. But it only goes so far as to show rankings for a certain year, not per week or month.

What do I do if I want to enter a person with the same name as an existing but unrelated staff member?

The Encyclopedia has the ability to disambiguate people with the same name (like Akira Ishida the voice actor vs. the manga artist) but this can only be done by staff. If you wish to submit a credit for a name which is not yet disambiguated in this way, you'll have to submit the credit under the existing name, and then post in the Encyclopedia forum a new topic asking to split the name.

When making a split request, include the name and ID of the person to split in the topic title (e.g. "Split request for Hiroaki YOSHIDA (#10082)"). In your post, include:
1) a link to the person's page
2) how to disambiguate the names (e.g. seiyuu vs. director)
3) which credits belong together
4) references to prove these are indeed two different people
⤷like this
Some cases (e.g. seiyuu vs. director) can be obvious, but less obvious cases (e.g. two animators with the same name) will require more verification.

Can I submit an experimental / non-commercial short anime to the encyclopedia?

Only if it meets one or more of the following criteria:
1) It is historically important (e.g. Namakura Gatana)
2) It has received wide-spread international acclaim and/or recognition (e.g. Mt. Head)
3) It was created by a well known anime studio or professional (e.g. Noiseman Sound Insect from Studio 4°C) Typically speaking, student works by current professionals (before they became pro) shouldn't be added without special cause, but experimental or self-published works created by well known professionals (after they became pro) should be added.
4) They have become important in some way to anime culture (e.g. Daicon shorts)

What are the kinds of relationships between anime and manga entries in the Encyclopedia, and what do they all mean?

related through story continuity
- sequel of (happens *after* the original; direct continuation)
- side story of (happens *during* the original)
- prequel of (happens *before* the original)
- spinoff of (same universe different characters / same characters different universe)

alternate versions of a given story
- remake of (same core story, "new and improved" animation/music/etc)
- compilation of (same basic story, re-use of footage, usually condensed to a shorter format)
- alternate retelling of (same basic premise, story diverges)
- remixed from (same core premise, story diverges, re-uses footage from original)
- an amalgam of (footage used to create a new story)
- alternate ending for (ignore end of original and craft new ending; half sequel and alternate retelling)

related through publishing structure / other
- part of (part of a collection/anthology)
- serialized in (ran in a manga magazine)
- adapted from (format change: manga to anime or anime to manga)
- related to (exact type of relationship is unclear)

Relationships cannot be added directly by users; if you to submit a relationship, post it in this thread and an Encyclopedia editor will take care of it.

how can i write review in the anime?
i can only write comment in my anime...

The Encyclopedia doesn't have a way to submit "user reviews" per se, but you can use MyAnime to accomplish the same thing. You could for example create a custom "Reviews" category (make sure to have "Allow public to see this category" turned ON), add anime to it, and write your review in the comment field. Voila! your own anime review page.

I was trying to look for yaoi anime in the encyclopedia, but I could find no way to search for anime that are tagged as being yaoi. As far as I could tell, you have to know the name of a particular anime for the search engine to work, but I just want to see the list of all yaoi titles in your database.

There are 3 ways to search for information in the Encyclopedia.

Name search
Search for specific anime / manga / person / company / lexicon. This search can be performed directly from the search box at the top of the page by clicking the little down-arrow and selecting "encyclopedia". Once on the search page, if you're only interested in, say, anime and manga, you can click the "anime" and "manga" links below the search box and the results will be filtered to included only those.

Genre search
While the main purpose is to search for genres & themes, this can also filter by production year, licensed status, and objectionable content. The results can also be ordered by rating, alphabetically, or by production date, making this a powerful tool for finding new anime to watch.

Sorted list
This is an older tool which was made a bit obsolete by the genre search, but still has a few uses such as, for contributors, finding which anime is most in need of info.

I suggested the name of a manga to the encyclopedia. How long will it be before an entry is set up which I can edit?

Well it really depends. If it becomes a subject of front page news e.g. adapted for anime, North America license announcement, copycat criminal, banned by Tokyo governor, etc., then the chance of getting approved within 24 hours will increase significantly. If the title is very niched, with a very small fan base and virtually no media attention, then of course it might take longer to be noticed.

We're giving away this gorgeous Kotobukiya figure of Yaya!― Today is the day that FUNimation Entertainment releases Unbreakable Machine-Doll (BD/DVD Combo) in regular and limited editions. To celebrate, FUNimation has decided to let ANN give away this beautiful Kotobukiya figure of Yaya from Unbreakable Machine Doll (a $99 value). You may have seen Unbreakable Machine Doll, but both of these comple...

Hope counts down the best moments where Yoko Kanno brought her A-game to Cowboy Bebop. Plus: your poll results, and vote for your favorite Bebop episodes!― 3 2 1, Let's Jam! It's time for a Cowboy Bebop themed episode of The Set List. This week, I've ranked my Top 10 Musical Moments from the legendary jazz-and-blues inspired anime, and you can check them out in the video below! (Please note that we...

PONYCAN USA launched a few months back with two shows: Denki-Gai and Yuki Yuna is a Hero. Executive Director Kazuyoshi Fukuba answers a few questions about what to expect, and what's up with those prices.― PONYCAN USA is the newly-minted US distribution arm of Pony Canyon, which has been in the Japanese media business since 1966. PONYCAN USA follows the example set by Aniplex of America, in that th...

Shinichiro Watanabe's zany sci-fi showcase for his artist pals winds up on bluray today, loaded with special features in a limited edition with a hefty price tag. Mike Toole investigates.― Space Dandy is a series full of magic-- a magic that first reveals itself late in episode 1, during a sequence in which the show's titular hero and his new pal, Meow, are forced to run away from a pack of jumbo-si...

Find out if you won!― Thank you (again) for entering our contest (again). Winners: Patrick Nakasone, Honolulu, Hi Hiddi Jordan, Bailey, Mi Saul Diaz, Arleta, Ca Watch for our next give-away coming SOON! In the meantime, head over to SpaceDandy.com to find out more about FUNimation's awesome Space Dandy sets.

This little-seen family adventure about a group of tanuki living in Kyoto has careful writing and beautiful scenery; Nick Creamer thinks it might just be a modern classic.― In the guidebook accompanying Eccentric Family, series composer Shotaro Suga speaks frankly of the difficulty of condensing an entire book into an anime, and the question of where to even begin telling the story. “There are just ...

Every good fantasy series has a few incredible elf ladies on display. Today, Lynzee decides to finally share the elf.― The term "bombshell" was coined, very appropriately, during World War II to refer to the likes of Marilyn Monroe, Jane Russell, and other sex symbols of the era. There aren't any elves in Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, but there are plenty of wild, voluptuous fantasy women wielding swor...

Deadman Wonderland is a dark, unsettling look into a private prison abusing the system for the whims of the Warden and a few governmental higher ups.― Ever since 1864, a “wonderland” has been a world where the rules of logic do not apply, a carnival that can be by turns fun and frightening. Deadman Wonderland has been playing with that definition since its first volume, and now in its seventh we beg...